White Dragon
The White Dragon (also known as Skeledragon, Bone Dragon or Quetzalcoatl, among many other names) is a recurrent enemy in the Castlevania series. They are the fossilized remains of a long-necked dinosaur animated by a demonic force. Origins Quetzalcoatl, also known as Feathered Serpent, was a prominent supernatural entity or deity found in many Mesoamerican religions. It was also venerated and called Kukulkan among the Yucatec Maya and Q'uq'umatz and Tohil among the K'iche' Maya. The double symbolism used in its name is considered allegoric to the dual nature of the deity, where being feathered represents its divine nature or ability to fly to reach the skies, and being a serpent represents its human nature or ability to creep on the ground among other animals of the Earth, a dualism very common in Mesoamerican deities. In the English version of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, he is called Orobourous, a poorly translated version of Ouroboros. It refers to an ancient concept, representing a snake or dragon eating its own tail. The concept itself symbolizes introspection, the eternal return or cyclicality, especially in the sense of something constantly re-creating itself. It also represents the infinite cycle of nature's endless creation and destruction, life and death. General description White Dragons are undead skeletal dragons. There are two basic types, those with their necks bound to a wall, and those which are free to move around as they please (either float, bounce, or burrow). Any variety can be a boss in a game (often called a Bone Dragon King) and some of the names used can refer to any of the types depending on the games. Skeledragon is a term used in older American games used only for the bound variety. White Dragon can be used for a bound variety or a unbound variety. The term Quetzalcoatl can be used to describe a bouncing or free-floating unbound varieties. Some unbound dragons are controlled by Flea Men riders called Dragon Riders. Some are considered the spines of deceased dragons, while others are said to be the remains of a long-necked dinosaur. Some still have their flesh intact or are alive, but otherwise behave like their skeletal counterparts. The White Dragon boss in Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth is normally bound, but is able to slither around the floors, walls, and ceilings. Bound variety ''Castlevania II: Simon's Quest Unlike most bound white dragons, this one is bound to the ground instead of a wall. Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge The Angel Mummy is essentially two bound White Dragons, the upper one having a human skull, while the bottom one has a dragon skull. Castlevania'' (N64) / Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness The White Dragon is a two-headed boss (or probably two individual monsters) that is fought atop the Castle Wall. The heads are constricted to a mechanical device which controls the large gate at the base of the tower, and thus, cannot move very far from it; although this doesn't prevent them from reaching most of the confined space that conforms the top of the tower. Their reach can be diminished to some extent if the player keeps running all around the structure, making their serpentine necks to entangle more and more around it. They initially attack by spewing blue fireballs. Once a head has lost half of its HP, its entire body will briefly go ablaze and its color will change from white to dark gray, at which point it will start unleashing a large stream of flames from its mouth. In Castlevania 64, the fire breath from the dragons will pass through walls and is very difficult to avoid; the attack lasts longer than the player character's invincible frames, and therefore, is capable of dealing large amounts of damage. In Legacy of Darkness, the damage is toned down somewhat and the fire breath will bounce off the structure containing the stairway rather than going through it, making it safe to hide behind. When a dragon changes to its second form, it will also drop a large amount of items, including Red Jewels, Sun Cards, Moon Cards, Gold (ranging from 100 to 500) and random sub-weapons (in Legacy of Darkness, they don't drop sub-weapons); however, these may be very hard to collect during the whole struggle and most will likely vanish before the player can find a moment to collect them (unless the entire battle is ended soon). Likewise, gray dragons will also drop another assortment of items when finally destroyed. ''Castlevania: Curse of Darkness Alternate elemental varieties of White Dragons in this game include Frost Dragon and Thunder Dragon. Thunder Dragon is a cousin of the White Dragon, this particular variation spits lightning at the player. Respectively, its two counterparts spit fire (White Dragon) and ice (Frost Dragon). Naturally, its physically attack involves headbutting the player. The first two are encountered in the Forest of Jigramunt, fixed onto a pair of pillars. They reappear in various places, the most of which can be found in the Infinite Corridor. They most one of these will drop is gold. Flying variety Castlevania: Symphony of the Night There are three main varieties of dragon found in the game, both in the Reverse Entrance and Reverse Colosseum; '''Dragon Rider' is a bouncing White Dragon with a Fleaman rider, while Orobourous is a larger flying dragon with a Fleaman rider. Both have interesting behaviors. The Dragon Rider bounces in a predictable pattern, with the spaces under its body being safe. It usually takes two bounces to turn around and is incapable of bouncing right into the corner of a room, always stopping one bounce short of this. The head is the only weak point. Orobourous is rather stranger; both the dragon's head and the Fleaman rider can be attacked. The Fleaman is a separate monster called Orobourous Rider that does not have a bestiary entry; it has 100 HP, half that of the dragon. If the Fleaman is killed before the dragon is, Orobourous will move into the background (changing color slightly) and become impossible to attack. It will then follow Alucard around and attack all targetable objects on screen (including candles), acting like a temporary Familiar. It must be noted, however, that the Karma Coin and Lapis Lazuli only drop if the dragon is killed; the Rider has no drops at all. The White Dragon in the Reverse Colosseum Is just a bone dragon and is one of the easier dragons. ''Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance Found in only one room in the castle near the entrance to the final battle, the White Dragon Lv3 is unique in that it is not fastened to the wall, but instead roams freely around the background, flying and twisting around corridors, and not actively seeking out the player. Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow '''Quetzalcoatl' behaves much like the Dragon Rider in Symphony of the Night, bouncing around the room in a predictable pattern. Like the Dragon Rider, it will always stop one bounce short of a room's entrance, and so cannot attack the player character if they remain in their starting position in a room. The head is the only weak point. The Bone Dragon King appears in Aria of Sorrow, but is unnamed and is invincible. The dragon is summoned by Chaos, and protects the core of Chaos, flying around and shooting spheres of goo that ricochets off of the walls. The Bone Dragon King does not have an entry in the bestiary, and is only defeated when Chaos is defeated. Crawling variety ''Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge The Ground Serpent (called such in Japan and the Bone Dragon in North America) was one of the bosses that could be fought in Dracula's Castle in ''Belmont's Revenge. Its long body burrowed in and out of the ground in a weaving pattern. ''Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance Although the Bone Dragon King never appears in Harmony of Dissonance, a leveled-up White Dragon acts similarly to the Bone Dragon King, and Death's second form looks like and acts similarly to the Bone Dragon king as well. Akumajō Dracula: The Arcade * Castlevania: The Adventure ReBirth'' The Bone Dragon King in this game is normally bound to a wall. However, it can detach itself and crawl around before perching on another wall. It can also shoot blue energy blasts and smash its head against the floor. Enemy Data Item Data See also *Quetzalcoatl Familiar es:White Dragon Category:Dragons Category:Flying Bosses Category:Flying Enemies Category:Skeletal Bosses Category:Skeletal Monsters Category:Adventure ReBirth Bosses Category:Arcade Bosses Category:Aria of Sorrow Enemies Category:Belmont's Revenge Bosses Category:Bloodlines Bosses Category:Bloodlines Enemies Category:Castlevania 64 Bosses Category:Castlevania I Enemies Category:Dawn of Sorrow Enemies Category:Dracula X Chronicles Enemies Category:Dracula X Enemies Category:Dracula's Curse Bosses Category:Harmony of Dissonance Enemies Category:Legacy of Darkness Bosses Category:Rondo of Blood Enemies Category:Simon's Quest Enemies Category:Symphony of the Night Enemies Category:Haunted Castle Bosses Category:Fire Enemies Category:Ice Enemies Category:Thunder Enemies